Jeff Judy

Jeff's Thoughts - June 8 , 2011

Core Values: In Action, or Inaction?

What do you believe in, as an organization? A couple of years ago, The Financial Brand asked that question of banks ranging widely in size in an effort to identify the core values of these institutions. They came up with a list of the most commonly mentioned values, but that doesn't tell us whether these banks actually acted on those values.

Let's ask some hard-nosed questions about The Financial Brand's findings:

Isn't it interesting when we all think alike? In their survey, two-thirds of the banks offered "Integrity" as one of their values. It was far and away the most common value mentioned. But does that mean that integrity really is one of the most powerful guiding principles in our industry? Or is this just PR, a cliche that every bank thinks every stakeholder wants to hear? What would you say if a survey of some other industry that sells a service showed that most of the practitioners embraced "integrity"?

How do you interpret a given value? The next most frequently cited value was "teamwork" (30% of respondents). Look at teamwork from a management perspective and you see a more effective staff, more consistent delivery of services. But what if you are an outsider who can't get an issue resolved? Does that person think "teamwork" means everybody covers up for each others' mistakes?

How often do these values spontaneously arise in discussions and conversations? When someone is doing explicit research and asks you about the core values of your organization, you give the answer some careful thought. You may draw on values that are clearly stated in materials like orientation slides, a formal mission statement, or even a "values brochure" of some sort. But how often does something like "integrity" come up in discussions among management, or in conversations between supervisors and staff?

Who hears the stated values most often? When you talk about "integrity" and "excellence" and "respect," all high-ranking items in the results, is it mostly through your promotional materials that your customers see? What does it mean if your customers hear about your values a lot more often than your employees do?

How do you know when values are important to your team? What measures do you employ to assess adherence to core values, to compare deeds to words?

Are there consequences? If you do have a way of tracking application of core values, what happens when your employees fall short?

Like most cultural issues, it comes down to a question of alignment. Your official core values are probably well known in the executive suite and in the marketing department. But if you asked front-line employees, would you get the same list of values?

And if you asked your customers to complete this statement: "I believe my bank's three most important values are __________," would "integrity" and "excellence" be at the top of this list?

If you don't know how the results would turn out, with your employees and your customers, maybe it is time to ask them. Without a tight, consistent culture in which common values are held throughout the institution, your stated values are not having much impact on the way you do business.